


A Captain Named Treason

by BoWritesStuff



Series: Mermaid! AU [1]
Category: Game Grumps
Genre: M/M, Mermaid! AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-16
Updated: 2018-08-16
Packaged: 2019-06-28 08:27:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15703518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoWritesStuff/pseuds/BoWritesStuff





	A Captain Named Treason

Dan settles down onto the reef for a mid day nap. Although many of the other mermaids prefer to bask on the rocks that jut out of the sea, Dan has always found it more comfortable to nap on the coral. The sunlight has warmed up the colorful rocks, and he can already feel himself drifting to sleep. He searches the coral for something that useful. Bright bursts of color and movement catch his eye. 

He spots a small clump of seaweed, and grabs it to use as a pillow. A spotted moral ray shoots out from the spot where the seaweed was.

Oops. The seaweed must have been its house. The eel angrily swings its head around, trying to find the culprit that stole its house. The eel spots Dan with the handful of seaweed, and its dull, blank eyes stare at him. Dan flares his gills. 

Go away. I’m trying to nap. Dan thinks. The moray eel slowly backs away, and disappear in the nooks and crannies of the reef. It’ll find a new home. 

-

Instinct wakes him up. He’s momentarily confused. He doesn’t know why, but his gut tells him to swim away, far away. His heart is fast and beating hard against his ribs. Something is very wrong. 

It’s not until a giant shadow covers the reef that he realizes what it is. The fish duck into the knobby coral for cover, and the underwater world is sudden paralyzed in fear. Dan looks up. A giant vessel of sorts is floating on top of the water. It only takes a second for him to realize what it is. 

A pirate ship. 

His mother used to tell him stories of the boats, how large they were, how they hunted mermaids for their scales to decorate themselves. Pirates and their ships were well known throughout these water. Yet, Dan has never seen one before. He thought they would look scarier, with jagged edges and weapons. This one is smooth and round on its belly. 

Curiosity pulls him towards the surface, and fear drags him down to the depth of ocean trenches. He slowly looks around. No other mermaid is there. They must have all swam away in fear. It only takes a few seconds for Dan to get close enough to touch the ship. He has always prided himself on being a silent swimmer, without making a single ripple. There’s no way that he’ll get caught. 

The wood is smooth and almost polished under his touch. How did humans make these ships? Did they build them in the water? Were they, perhaps, smarter than mermaids thought they were?

Suddenly, something brushes against his tail, and he tries to pull it away. His arm gets caught on the same material, and it feels like there’s no water for a moment. His heart is pounding, and his mind is racing. He whips around, trying to get free, but it only causes him to get more tangled. 

Swim away, swim away. 

He lunges down, away from the ship. His arm slips loss, but his tail is hopelessly tangled. He turns his head. What was it caught on? Maybe he could bite through it, or cut it-

It’s a net. A woven, strong net. His mind is suddenly empty, except for one thing that his mother always told him. 

Pirates always use nets to catch mermaids. 

They’ve caught me. They’re gonna kill me. They’re gonna steal my scales. There’s no way they would let him go. He’s always taken extreme care of his glittery blue scales. They’re much brighter and shinier than any other mermaid’s. He’s a jackpot for these pirates. 

He’s being dragged out of the water, and in one last desperate attempt to get free, he shouts for help. 

“Mom! Dad! Someone help me!” Dan shouts, desperately clawing at the water. The reef is so far away now. 

He’s hoisted up the side of the ship, and the noises makes him want to claw his ears off. The loud shouting of pirates, the loud screeching of seagulls, and the creaking of the ship. These are the sounds he’s going to die to. He’s roughly tossed onto the ship, and he lands hard on the wood. His eyes aren’t meant for above water vision, and it takes a moment to adjust. 

There are humans everywhere. They hold shiny metal weapons, they’re pointing at him, they’re smiling at him like he’s nothing more than a pretty colorful cuttlefish. Suddenly, a silence falls over them. A man walks into the circle of pirates, obviously some sort of leader, and studies Dan for a moment. The salty air feels scratchy on his gills. 

“Please.” Dan coughs, “Please let me go.” Scattered gasps and laughter spread through the circle of pirates. 

“The creature speaks!” 

“Sing for us, siren!” 

Dan flinches away from them. But he can understand them. Surely, they must understand him as well. 

“I didn’t know, I just wanted to see your ship, please, please let me go.” The man in front of him doesn’t say a word, and Dan feels his chances slipping away. “I have pearls, I can pay you. I… I have a family, I have a mother and father and a sister, I need to go back to them.” His chest is heaving. 

His skin is painfully dry now, and the only places where it is wet is where tears have streaked down his face. 

“I don’t wanna die.” Dan whispers. There’s a moment of silence that passes over all the pirates. 

“Throw him back.” the man says, in a flat and emotionless voice. Dan stares up at him. His voice was so empty that the words seemed impossible. The other pirates stare at their captain. 

“Captain, look at the color of those scales!” 

“We’re gonna have to cut the nets, though.” 

“A waste.” 

The mutters pass through the crowd, and Dan looks around. The faces look disappointed and angry. The captain suddenly looks very, very angry. 

“That is an order!” his voice booms, loud enough to scare Dan. Everyone falls silent again, and no one moves to carry out the order. The captain glares at all of them. 

“Go back to your stations.” the crowd pauses, then obeys. The captain looms over him, then takes a step forward. Dan immediately tries to move back, but his tail is still tangled in the net. The captain pauses, and gets down on his knees and pulls out a knife. Dan gasps, and the man seems to have heard. 

“Just gonna cut that net offa ya, alright?” the man whispers, quietly enough that only Dan can hear. His voice seems completely different, and the terrifying man that stood above him only a few moments ago is gone. He moves closer with the knife, and keeps his word. With the sharp blade, he works on sawing through the ropes that make the net. Dan’s tail is so tangled that it looks like the job may take a half an hour. 

“Why?” Dan whispers. The man looks up. Now that Dan is closer, he can see that the man has astonishingly blue eyes that match Dan’s scales. His hair is peppered grey, and although he has lines on his face, he seems to have a youthful spark about him. 

He almost seems… mermaid. Kind and understanding. Not like the murderous humans. 

“Would you rather die on this boat?” the man asks, with a hint of humor in his voice. 

“No.” 

“Then don’t complain.” With a grunt, the last of the ropes are cut away. Dan gently lifts his tail, flinching. He might have hurt it while struggling, but he’s still grateful. “You count yourself lucky. My crew is gonna be pissed for the next few days ‘cause of you.” 

“How did you do that so quickly?” Dan asks, gently touching the thick ropes. They seem almost impossible to cut through. The captain sheathes his knife. 

“Practice.” Comes the short reply. “You need some help getting back in the water?” 

“Yes please. That would be nice.” The captain nods, and gently places one arm under Dan’s tail, and the other supporting his chest. Almost effortlessly, the captain picks him up. Despite his age, the man is well built and strong. With a few strides, Brian is at the side of the boat, and the water is temptingly close. But not yet. He wants to talk a little more. 

The captain seems to sense it. 

“Be more careful next time. Other pirates… aren’t as kind.” Brian says. Dan looks around, and notices that he entirety of the crew is watching. 

“What’s your name?” 

“They call me Treason.” 

“But what’s your real name?” Dan searches the man’s eyes. 

“My mother named me Brian.” he whispers, lost in thought. 

“My name is Dan.” And with that, Dan dives into the water. Brian watches as the glitter of the blue scales fades into the deep blue of the ocean. 

“Why did you set him free?” his first mate asks. Brian scowls, and the man shrugs and walks away. 

It’s the first time he’s met a mermaid with the voice as lovely as a sirens.


End file.
